Castilleja foliolosa

Castilleja foliolosa is a species of Indian paintbrush known by the common names woolly Indian paintbrush and Texas Indian paintbrush. It is native to California and northern Baja California, where it grows in coastal sage scrub, chaparral and rocky desert and mountain slopes. Despite its common name, it does not occur in Texas. It is a parasitic or semi-parasitic plant on a variety of small shrubs such as Chamise, Golden Yarrow or Sagebrush. This perennial wildflower grows up to 60 centimeters tall and is coated in woolly white or gray branching hairs. The leaves are linear in shape and up to 5 centimeters long. The flower cluster is made up of layers of leaves tipped in bright orange-red to dull yellowish green. Between the colorful leaves appear the nondescript flowers, which are greenish in color and pouch-shaped. The fruit is a capsule just over a centimeter long.